Who have been West Ham's most clinical, creative and defensively sound performers so far?

It has been a turbulent start to the Premier League season if you are a West Ham United supporter. With six points from a possible 12, following two terrific away victories against Arsenal and Liverpool, Slaven Bilic's side occupy eighth place in the top-flight table.

Throughout the following article, HITC Sport analyse the club's top performers from the first few weeks of the new campaign:

Most clinical: Mark Noble's inclusion as the club's most clinical player thus far will come as a surprise for some. However, the Englishman's two goals have seen him convert an impressive 40% of his total attempts. Having averaged 1.25 shots per game, he is by no means the Hammers' most adventurous player in the final third, although he cannot be accused of wasting his chances.

Position

Total Shots per App

Conversion Rate (%)

Total Goals

Appearances

Mark Noble

MF

1.25

40

2

4

Manuel Lanzini

MF

1.5

33

1

2

Mauro Zárate

FW

1.5

33

1

2

Most creative: Perhaps unsurprisingly, summer signing Dimitri Payet has established himself as Slaven Bilic's most creative asset, fashioning an average 2.25 key passes per appearance. However, when it comes to his total number of assists, the Frenchman is bettered by his younger counterpart Aaron Cresswell, who has two in four games.

Position

Key Passes per App

Total Assists

Appearances

Dimitri Payet

MF

2.25

1

4

Aaron Cresswell

DF

1.75

2

4

Mauro Zárate

FW

1

0

2

Most influential defensively: In terms of the player who has weighed in most defensively - regaining possession for the Hammers most often - it is summer signing Pedro Obiang. Throughout his opening three appearances for the east London club, the Spaniard has averaged two tackles and just over three interceptions per game.

Position

Tackles and Interceptions Won per App

Tackles Won per App

Interception Won per App

Appearances

Pedro Obiang

MF

5.33

2

3.33

3

Manuel Lanzini

MF

4

3.5

0.5

2

Winston Reid

DF

4

1

3

4

Most accomplished distributor: Having already featured as the club's most clinical player, Mark Noble also takes the crown for West Ham's most accomplished distributor of possession. Having averaged 40.5 successful passes per appearance, while boasting an overall success rate of 89%, he is the club's clear pace-setter in this key area.

Chris Linnell

Chris is a freelance football writer from Wiltshire, England. He is currently studying Modern History and Politics at the University of Liverpool. He has written for various other sites, including the Boot Room and Bleacher Report. His work has also featured on Eurosport.